Cripple Creek Ice Festival 2018~ pt.3

The second weekend of the Ice Festival saw record crowds fill the streets of Cripple Creek. And the additional sculptures added to the magic. 

The sculptures stay up for an additional week for visitors and residents to enjoy. Can't wait to see what's in store for next year!

Cripple Creek Ice Festival 2018 ~ pt.2

While the first day of the event brought a snowstorm to the area, the second day was gorgeous! The beautiful sunshine allowed people to fully enjoy the frosty creations.

In Cripple Creek, no event is complete unless there are DONKEYS!

The City had another shipment of ice brought in before the second weekend because in the past, the ice has melted in the warm temperatures, causing the sculptures to look a bit sad. But this year was different. The cold stuck around all week and the new ice allowed the sculpting teams to create more beautiful-ness. 

Next time we'll take a look at the second batch of sculptures and some night-time views.

Cripple Creek Ice Festival 2018 ~ pt. 1

The Cripple Creek Ice Festival takes place every February for two weekends. What a great way to break up the winter doldrums. Only thing is, it really hasn't been much like winter around here. We have had such extreme temperature swings! Almost Spring-like for a few days, then a storm blows in and brings us a small amount of snow and some frigid temperatures. The last couple years has seen warm temperatures for the Ice Fest and the ice begins melting not long after the first day. But this year was a little different. We had snow arrive on the first day and moderately chilly temperatures continued throughout the first weekend.

The Ice Festival is an interactive ice sculpture event with a different theme every year. The public is encouraged to touch, sit, and enjoy the sculptures carved by the sculpting teams. This year's theme was Renaissance in Ice with five professional ice sculpting teams who turned the downtown area into a medieval wonderland complete with an ice castle, dragon ice slide, carnival games in ice and for the adults a martini ice luge.

The ice was brought in on two semi-trailers over the course of two days- about 180,000 pounds of ice from the Great Lake region of Ohio. That would be 600 blocks of ice each weighing 300 pounds. It was fun watching the process. 

The ice is shrink wrapped for its protection

All manner of items were used to sculpt the ice - axes, chainsaws, blow dryers, kitchen utensils. Whatever gave the carvers the ability to shape the ice.

Next time, we'll take a walk down the street as another storm moves in and we'll view the finished sculptures. 

Upcoming Events & New Venues

October is finally here. The one month out of the year that us Halloween-lovers all look forward to. The month we plan for all year long. The month where bats, and ghosts, and grinning Jacks (short for jack-o-lanterns) adorn all the houses instead of just a few. (WHAT?!?  You don't keep your bats and ghosts and grinning Jacks out all year long??)

And with October comes a flurry of activity. So many wonderful festivals and balls and other events to attend. To start the month, I will be a vendor at the Denver Pagan Pride Festival on October 12th in Denver's Civic Center Park. 

And to end the month I will be a vendor at the Denver Witches' Ball on November 2nd.

And my artistic creations can now be found at the Shops at the Silver Mine in Cripple Creek. Shops at the Silver Mine is a charming collective of Colorado artists and craftsmen. 

If you're in search of that unique something to add to your collection, stop by Clifton's Curios and Antiques Mall in Colorado Springs. I can vouch to the uniqueness of some of the items - Hubby and I are downsizing and our excess can be found for sale there. Along with some of my folk art.

With all the activity this month, I'm not sure how many road-trips we'll be going on. But I will share our trip to the mountains from last month. And there is one event we're definitely planning on attending - the Coffin Races held in Manitou Springs every October!

So until next time..... Happy Haunting!

Fairy Thoughts...

The Festival of Faerie was F*U*N!!!! 

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I was so busy in my booth that I didn't have much of a chance to wander and watch. Fortunately my daughter was the official photographer (Pixie Press) for the festival and so I lived it through her eyes and the lens of her camera. 

My attire for these types of events is a work in progress. My persona is the Witch of the WildWoods. I have not found my name yet. I am Elven-ish so wings will not be a needed item. But I experienced Wing envy at the Festival. OH MY! There were some gorgeous wings! 

But I still don't want wings, they are just too cumbersome when working in a booth. 

One day I will have as complete an outfit as some of these Faeries.

The Bubbles...

Columbine the Fairy was the wonder behind them. She has the record for the largest soap bubble created in the state. 

She has two dowels between which is strung a net made of cotton rope which creates the multiple bubbles. 

To create the large bubbles, the cotton rope is in a large loop which is attached to two dowels only at the top of the loop. She also uses her own recipe of bubble mix. Here is a link to Columbine's website. 

As my grand-daughter said, "I want to live here..."

Faerie Fotos

Festival of Faerie 2013

Small Faeries

Tall Faeries

Rose Faerie

Mushroom Faerie

Steampunk Faerie

Faerie Dogs

Bubble Faerie

Faerie Circles

Faerie Queen

So many Faeries!